NZ next to ban Huawei

New Zealand’s intelligence agency has blocked the telecom industry’s first request to use 5G equipment provided by China’s Huawei Technologies.

Services provider Spark New Zealand, which made the request, said on it would review the reasoning before considering any further steps.

The decision comes as Western nations become increasingly wary of what they say is possible Chinese government involvement in fifth-generation mobile and other communications networks. Huawei has repeatedly insisted Beijing has no influence over it.

Earlier this year Australia banned Huawei from supplying 5G equipment, also citing security risks. Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported the US government was encouraging allies to shun the Chinese supplier.